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Categories: UX
Posted: by Ben Bogard

A user flow is a diagram which shows how a user can and should navigate content on a site. This is not to be confused with how navigation works, but a user flow will influence the eventual navigation of a site.

Example of a user flow for a survey: Ballard U. District Survey User Flow using Visio, included with our Microsoft Office subscription.

What is the purpose?

It answers two basic questions, “Who is the user and what do you want them to achieve?”

We must consider the balance between what WE (the creators) want THEM (the visitors) need to gain from visiting the site. Are they tech savvy? Are they return visitors to the product? Do they need education? These are questions which should be answered via a user flow.

Where do they start?

Is it the homepage? A link from an email? A QR code? Where does the user’s journey begin and when they reach the site, what information do they need right away and how do they get to what we need them to understand?

Steps they take to reach the goal.

Is the content divided into sections for readability? Is there media on the site they need to peruse (videos, images, pdfs). Where are the decision points? Are there CTAs which can be used to direct the user to take different paths based on who they are and why they are on the site.

Reach the goal.

What does success look like for the user(s). Are there different goals for different visitors and if so, how do they decide on their own what those goals are and how do they reach them?

Example: A user is filling out a survey and they have an optional question about demographics. If the user would like to share that information then they can continue answering questions. If the user does not want to share that information, then how do they skip it and submit the survey? This illustrates one goal with two different paths.

Best practices.

  1. Start with user goals – we must understand the purpose of the content
  2. Keep it simple – not everyone knows what a user flow is, so KISS (keep it simple, stupid)
  3. Stay consistent – use standard symbols with a legend to show purpose such as conditionals
  4. Stay goal focused – ensure each goal is the final or almost final step in the flow
  5. Collaborate – QA your user flow and make sure it makes sense for people who do not know the content

Reference: https://www.figma.com/resource-library/user-flow/